Preparing skin for weight loss

[MieleLimone]

I'm 50, obese and have just had a huge wake up call.

I have at least four stones to lose to get to a healthy weight, this is about a third of my body weight.

What do I need to do help my skin to shrink with me as much as possible?

Thank you.

It won't, sorry to be blunt.

I've lost 7st and have a lot of loose skin, and I'm half your age, no amount of moisturiser etc is going to help

I have read good reviews of Sensica toning devices.

Collagen and a lot of moisturiser. But you will in viably have some loose skin

If you lose a huge amount you may need surgery in stages, known as a body lift. Sometimes done on NHS if excessively loose skin causes mobility problems and skin problems, but not normally. I imagine after all the weight loss jabs, a lot of these procedures will needed.

It's probably mostly down to luck, but if you do it fairly slowly, exercise, use any random body cream and maybe try taking collagen, then you are probably giving yourself a decent chance.

Great, thank you. I'll not get my hopes up!

Weight lifting might help. There will still be loose skin but the people who have lost a lot of weight who also lift tend to look better loose-skin-wise than those who don't. This is my observation.

I lost five and a half stone in a year. No loose skin. Lots of stretch marks but I already had those from being overweight and puberty. Lather yourself in a thick moisturiser. Collagen powder and nmn powder and vitamin c absorbic acid powder. Body brush. And you’ll look amazing!

Losing weight through fasting / extended periods of ketosis is supposed to minimise excess skin. I've read this several times but never looked into it, probably worth a Google.

I'm concerned about this. I have a lot to lose and am considering weight loss injections.

I would rather be a healthy weight + skin than not a healthy weight but I'd also like to minimise it.

I had weight loss surgery and lost 9 stone with hardly any loose skin.

I used bio oil every day, take collagen supplements and exercise on a vibration plate every day.

Not sure which made the biggest difference, or if it was the combination! But am v glad I put in the effort.

Hi @MieleLimone we sound very similar in terms of weight loss and age. I have very few facial wrinkles which is probably down to the fat I carry…I had the same concerns about skin elasticity. I did the following:

1. upped my exercise to a minimum of 10k steps per day on a treadmill with an increasing incline and added in PT 3 x pw for a month to kickstart new habits.
2. tried to not drink alcohol mon-Thursday
3. tried to compress eating into 12-8pm each day.
4. Bought a Nuface electrical device to stimulate muscle tone on my face
5. Added in retinol to evening skincare
6. added in Strivectin neck cream to avoid lose skin in that area

I’ve always drunk plenty of water and moisturised well so that was already good and I eat unprocessed foods with a low sodium content. I’d sorted my hormones for the past 2 years with HRT so I’d ruled out those being the weight gain cause. However, Weight loss did not ensue so after a holiday on which I developed a knee injury and was not able to exercise as much, I decided to try Mounjaro. I’m on week2. I’ve lost 5lbs so far. Main benefit has been a lack of wanting alcohol which is obviously better for skin and weight loss. Since being on Mounjaro, I’ve also started a type of Pilates system called Pvolve alongside the cardio which has a range of exercises on a grid mat and uses muscles deep within the body. I’m hoping this will mean I’ll tighten up all over the body. For my face, I’ve continued with the steps above but also upped facial massage and have a sarah chapman facial massage device that I use in the evening. I’m probably going to return to Prai neck creams as I can’t see the difference with the Strivectin and i can’t justify the additional cost. I do love their other peptide tight lift products though and would recommend them. Along with NIOD fractional eye serum. Regarding collagen, after doing research it isn’t something I’m convinced you can absorb or stimulate by ingesting so I’m a bit sceptical. However you can get treatments to stimulate production so I’m going to look into those (although the cost is prohibitively expensive right now).

Bottom line, I’m expecting some sagginess in my body skin and face but I feel happy I’m doing what I can to minimise it. I think as long as you lose weight steadily and incorporate toning you should find yourself in a better position to reduce lose skin. Good luck!

What colleges do people recommend?

also - slow weight loss is far better for elasticity !

Thanks for sharing this. Before I lost weight everyone was negative that I’d be left with lots of loose skin and it made the process a bigger stress and worry. It’s the case for some, but most people’s skin retracts well.

Colleges or collagen?

Have a read into Fasting and how this helps with reducing the excess skin because as your body shrinks down it uses up the excess collagen and protein. Dr Jason Fung on YouTube has some interesting videos on this, also his podcasts on 'The fasting method podcast' with Megan ramos

Autophagy - it’s fascinating

I did the fast800 and lost five and a half stone. No loose skin. Do you think I went into ketosis and that’s why I didn’t get loose skin?

😆 collagen!

I wish I had known this. I have lost over 3 stone this year and am utterly miserable about how I look in terms of loose skin. I can't wear shorts, sleeveless tops or anything that shows my midriff. I look awful. Good luck to you. I lost weight very quickly due to stress.

I have 10 stone to lose and I am worried I'll be one of those with lots of odd looking excess flabb on visi le areas.

I'm okay "tucking my tummy in" if its there but it's arms and legs if they have literally skin rolling down it will looks strange won't it.

But I'd rather be healthy.